Dharmesh Sheth has revealed that Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta absolutely loves Martin Odegaard on Sky Sports News.
Odegaard spent the back end of last season on loan at Arsenal and he forced his way into Arteta’s starting plans quickly.
Sheth has now revealed that Odegaard has become very popular at the Emirates Stadium, with everyone at the club ‘loving’ the Norwegian playmaker.
As a result Arsenal are still in talks with Madrid over signing the number 10.
However, any deal hinges on whether Arsenal can actually reach Madrid’s asking price for the 22-year-old.
“This is an interesting one. Arsenal do remain in touch with Real Madrid over potentially signing Martin Odegaard again,” he said.
“He was on loan at Arsenal. They all loved him there. Arteta loved him. Obviously he has gone back to Real Madrid under Carlo Ancelotti now.
“But Arsenal are not ruling out the possibility of going back in for Odegaard on a permanent deal, the big stumbling block is the price and whether Arsenal would be priced out of the market.”
Important signing
Arteta being such a big fan of Odegaard comes as no surprise, as Arsenal seem to have made him their priority signing.
The pressure has just ramped up on the Gunners to get a deal over the line too, as they have missed out on other targets.
Arsenal failed to capture Emiliano Buendia, with the club seemingly more focused on luring Odegaard to them for a second spell.
If he was to arrive at Arsenal on a permanent basis, then Odgeaard would be under pressure to perform on a slightly more consistent basis.
Odegaard showed flashes of brilliance during his first spell at the club – with his display against West Ham United particularly eye catching – but he didn’t contribute too much in the way of goals or assists.
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